Pop provocateur Charli XCX transforms into a cinematic architect — A24 backs a neon-soaked, meta portrait of fame featuring Kylie Jenner, Alexander Skarsgård, Rachel Sennott and an unusually bold ensemble.
Charli XCX has taken a decisive step from pop stages to the director’s chair of culture with The Moment, a feature that already looks like a mood board for this era’s glossy anxiety.
Announced with an eye-catching neon rollout, the A24-backed film brings together an arresting mix of mainstream and indie talents — from Kylie Jenner and Alexander Skarsgård to Rachel Sennott, Rosanna Arquette, Kate Berlant, Shygirl and A. G. Cook — promising a project that flirts with both commercial magnetism and art-house calibration.
Written by Aidan Zamiri (who also directs) and Bertie Brandes, the story positions Charli in a meta role: a rising pop star balancing the pressures of industry machinery while preparing for an arena tour debut. On paper, it’s a familiar premise — fame as theatre — but the creative team around Charli suggests a different outcome.
Zamiri’s background in high-concept visuals and music videos signals a film likely to favour texture, rhythm and striking imagery over straight biopic tropes. With A. G. Cook on music and Charli’s own Studio365 producing, the soundtrack and sonic architecture are almost certain to be integral storytelling devices, not mere background.
This film arrives at a curious cultural junction where musicians are no longer content to appear in films — they want to shape them. Charli’s pivot feels less like celebrity vanity and more like an artist expanding her medium: she’s been programming her own narrative through albums, visuals and now production.
Her recent album momentum and acting appearances have set a credible runway; The Moment may be the first time her musical persona is deliberately refracted through cinema.
There’s risk, of course. Meta-musical films can become indulgent echo chambers if they lean on celebrity cameos instead of character work. Yet the casting choices — a balance of dramatic heavyweights, quirky comic talents, and underground personalities — suggest the film intends to be textured rather than transactional.
If The Moment lives up to its team, it could stand as a smartly styled, emotionally pointed look at the machinery of modern fame — loud, surreal and sonically brave.
At minimum, it cements Charli XCX as a creative force unwilling to stay inside the lines.
